[Fmpro] network/contract question....

[Chris Alpiar]

If you go to atom films there is a 1:1 ratio of forced ad per movie viewed,
and underneath the ad while its playing it says "Please wait a few seconds -
ads help Atom pay filmmakers" The ads are national TV quality ads too...

-----Original Message-----
From: fmpro-bounces+chris=alpiar.com at nxport.com
[mailto:fmpro-bounces+chris=alpiar.com at nxport.com] On Behalf Of Scootman
Music
Sent: Wednesday, June 20, 2007 3:24 PM
To: fmpro at nxport.com
Subject: [Fmpro] network/contract question....

So, I go to see my SESAC rep the other day about, among other things,  
a little
Star Wars spoof I scored on a lark that happened to win '2006 Best  
Comedy' at the
Fan Film Awards. "Sith'D"  has been shown almost 230,000 times on  
AtomFilms
website, and I was wondering, since they'd sent me the cue sheet and  
the director
had submitted it, why I hadn't seen any money from it....

He printed out a little something from the director/production  
company contract that
I'd not seen:

"By submitting User Materials in any form to Atom Entertainment, in  
addition to other
provisions of the Terms, you hereby waive any and all moral rights in  
connection with
the User Materials and you automatically grant Atom Entertainment and  
Atom
Entertainment's affiliated companies a royalty-free, world-wide, non- 
exclusive, sub-
licensable and assignable right and license to use, copy, reproduce,  
modify, adapt,
publish, edit, translate, create derivative works from, transmit,  
distribute, publicly display,
and publicly perform such User Materials for the purpose of  
distributing, displaying or
promoting the User Materials on any media or website operated by, and  
in any way related
marketing materials produced by, Atom Entertainment and its'  
affiliates."

Turns out that Atom = MTV = Viacom. And guess which PRO they're not  
signatory to?
Some of the language, esp. 'create derivative works from' is kinda  
scary.

My rep says that ESPN was the first, and obviously other folks are  
catching on, to force
production companies to indemnify the network/studio/broadcaster from  
any IP issues
in order to get their works on the air.

Has anyone else seen this?

Any ideas how I can protect myself in the future? My PRO feels loathe  
to start going after
production companies for residuals.


Thanks,


Scott W. Hallgren

Scootman Music & Sound Design
2021 21st Ave South
suite 445
Nashville, TN 37212
615.319.9556 c
615.777.2122 f

www.scootmanmusic.com

Scootman Music (SESAC)

"I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more  
I have of it." - Thomas Jefferson

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